Hi everyone i am looking for an a v amp that will give good stereo sound as well as good surround sound, i have my speakers which is a monitor audio bx 5 5.1 setup and a sony 790 bd player to go with my panny 50 gt 30, i listen to rock and pop mostly through c/ds and an ipod through my marantz cd6004 my room is 16x12 and i have a budget of 600.00 ,can anyone sujest a sutible av amp thanks.
A V AMP THAT SOUNDS GOOD WITH MUSIC
- Thread starter rock15
- Start date
Many here recommend Yamaha, Marantz or Denon. Take a look at these in yr price range and reviews.
bigboss
Moderator
None of the AV amps will beat the Rotel, although Yamaha & Denon will run it close. Make sure you buy one with analogue pre-outs which will enable you to connect your Rotel to the amp if you're not happy with the musicality of the AV amp.
thanks big boss , how does that work ,are you saying i can use the av amp for av and rotel for music thanks
Ok BB! Ive heard this b4. Out of interest I wonder why? I would hope a £1000 av would beat a £250 amp musically. Is it because an av has different amplification or are they over processed for music? What makes an amp more musical than an av receiver? I am not arguing since many agree and I have no peraonal experience. Cheers
bigboss
Moderator
RobinKidderminster said:
I was part of the "Big Question" feature in the mag more than 2 years ago. The Rotel RA-04SE was tested against the Denon 1910, Denon 2310 & Sony STR-DA5400ES which was worth £1400 at the time. The Rotel was better than all of them.
I think the reason is that all the money you pay buying a stereo amplifier goes into audio components only. With an AV receiver, there is so much tech crammed along with video components, upscaling etc. (which costs money) that very little money goes for audio components. Obviously, the quality suffers. Also, theoretically, there is interference from video components in an AV receiver.
bigboss
Moderator
rock15 said:
Yes you can!
Check this:
http://www.hifihunter.com/articles/improving-stereo-performance-surround-sound-setup-part-2/
the problem is that you demande de most costly equipement in home theatre
the price from a your system going to increase with your demand of stereo ...that something i watched for many times now
good stereo performance is making the price high
nad anthem arcam all music first receivers
sorry you going to have to spend a little more money if you want decent stereo ...
this issue is discus by me on question for andy clough and musicraft
the price from a your system going to increase with your demand of stereo ...that something i watched for many times now
good stereo performance is making the price high
nad anthem arcam all music first receivers
sorry you going to have to spend a little more money if you want decent stereo ...
this issue is discus by me on question for andy clough and musicraft
michael hoy
Well-known member
bigboss
Moderator
rendu said:
It's not so bad either! I must add that I had to listen very carefully before the difference between stereo amp & AV receiver was discernible.
Native_bon
Well-known member
I dnt agree with bigboss. Not all av recievers are bad at playing to channel music. Unless ur really into seroius listening of Hi res music the difference is not as much as people think. Am currently using A marantz Sr6003 av amp. I have put this aganist so many 2 channel amps & it just bests them hands dwn. Smooth, very musical & open full sound!!
If u look well soem Av amps are good at music. Its not the general rule anymore... Things have moved on. But if must get the 2 channel setup then get a 2 channel amp with a fix av input like biggboss explains.
All the best.
If u look well soem Av amps are good at music. Its not the general rule anymore... Things have moved on. But if must get the 2 channel setup then get a 2 channel amp with a fix av input like biggboss explains.
All the best.
bigboss
Moderator
Native_bon
Well-known member
Try a 500 poundish av amp, its a myth about the quality of av amps in stereo not being as good as dedicated stereo amps.
Apart from giving alot more options - anolog or digital inputs, They offer the novelty of DSP functions for your entertainment. Set up is important though to get the best from them, turn all unused channels off, ensure speaker size is set to large and low frequencies are sent to the fronts. And if you want to really listen turn off the DSP effects. You can also bi-amp or bi-wire your front speakers.
AV amps usually have power supplys capable of handling at least 5.1 times 50wpc - it'll handle the dynamic swings in any music you present to it in stereo with more than enough head room.
in my experience while stereo amps do go louder (shouty) a well sorted av amp controls speakers better, you may be impressed with the stereo amp in a short test/demo but in a domestic set up av amps sound fine.
Yamaha usually do AV amps that are very capable in stereo.
I Have a Rotel ra - 1520 and an old Yamaha ax-620....... The yamaha sounds better in stereo....maybe its preference though.
Apart from giving alot more options - anolog or digital inputs, They offer the novelty of DSP functions for your entertainment. Set up is important though to get the best from them, turn all unused channels off, ensure speaker size is set to large and low frequencies are sent to the fronts. And if you want to really listen turn off the DSP effects. You can also bi-amp or bi-wire your front speakers.
AV amps usually have power supplys capable of handling at least 5.1 times 50wpc - it'll handle the dynamic swings in any music you present to it in stereo with more than enough head room.
in my experience while stereo amps do go louder (shouty) a well sorted av amp controls speakers better, you may be impressed with the stereo amp in a short test/demo but in a domestic set up av amps sound fine.
Yamaha usually do AV amps that are very capable in stereo.
I Have a Rotel ra - 1520 and an old Yamaha ax-620....... The yamaha sounds better in stereo....maybe its preference though.
Thanks for that im lookin at the yam rx v673 but thinking about going up to the yamaha dsp-ax863se at £600.00, theres also a sony and pioneer and onkyo within my budget will give them a listen to .what do you rhink of these.
I have directly compared my Yamaha rxv2065 and my old arcam a75 amp in 2 channel stereo and IMO the arcam wins hands down hence why I used it in av bypass for a long while.
Everybody is entitled to their own opinion and at the end of the day what ever sounds best to you is what you should buy.
Just be warned people are very biased one way or the other and so it really is best to listen and judge for yourself.
Everybody is entitled to their own opinion and at the end of the day what ever sounds best to you is what you should buy.
Just be warned people are very biased one way or the other and so it really is best to listen and judge for yourself.
I have recently upgraded my Denon 1910 to the Yamaha RX-V673 and the upgrade in 2 channel music is very noticable.
I have B&W M1 (x5) and a BK XLS200 sub and have set my front speakers to small and listen in 2.1. I have used the microphone to calibrate the speakers and there is a marked improvement.
MP3 quality music is ok but there is a large jump up when I listen to FLAC or CDs, even via my PS3. Even digital radio via freeview sounds better with the yamaha.
I watch a lot of blu rays and play games so an AV amp is essential - if I had the space I would prefer a separate hifi set up but think I have the best set up for a small-ish (4m x 4m) room.
I have B&W M1 (x5) and a BK XLS200 sub and have set my front speakers to small and listen in 2.1. I have used the microphone to calibrate the speakers and there is a marked improvement.
MP3 quality music is ok but there is a large jump up when I listen to FLAC or CDs, even via my PS3. Even digital radio via freeview sounds better with the yamaha.
I watch a lot of blu rays and play games so an AV amp is essential - if I had the space I would prefer a separate hifi set up but think I have the best set up for a small-ish (4m x 4m) room.
rock15 said:
I'm currently considering the RX673 myself. (trading the ra-1520)
I have no experience with the other amps, but like I've said don't dimiss the ability of these amps in 2 channel stereo, also if your CD player has a digital out (coax), use it (its usually a better output than the anolog outs...... compare them, you'll see.)
If your serious about 2 channel music, I defo go with BB's idea of getting an av amp with pre outs. Your Rotel is a good amp, why waste it!
I've added, via pre outs, a Marantz PM6004 to my award winning (2010) Denon AVR 2310 (£800) recently, and not looked back!
I've added, via pre outs, a Marantz PM6004 to my award winning (2010) Denon AVR 2310 (£800) recently, and not looked back!
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